This article will give you the best usage tips for Commusoft on iOS devices. Your device must also meet our minimum spec: Minimum requirements.
Close the app when not in use
The app does not log out once installed, so please close the app once the day's work is completed and open again at the start of the day. This will help the overall performance of the app and also reduce battery usage. To close the app simply click into your recent apps list on your device (double-tap the home button, or swipe up from the bottom of the phone) and swipe the app closed.
Recommended
When first opening the app we recommend you being connected to WiFi to ensure any updates and new jobs sync through. This also ensures your device doesn’t go to sleep before all processes are complete.
Keep the app updated
If you don’t keep your app up to date, you won’t be able to take advantage of the latest features and fixes. You can enable auto-update with the following steps:
1. Open iTunes&App Store.
2. Scroll until you see 'Automatic Downloads'.
3. Tap in the white oval next to 'Updates'.
Keep app notifications on
Notifications in Commusoft make sure you’re aware of any changes to diary events, it’s important to make sure these are turned on. Otherwise, an engineer may someday find themselves at a property where a job has been rearranged or without a key part that was requested at the last minute.
Do not uninstall the app unless advised by support
If the app is uninstalled when you have an issue we can not fully investigate the issue and you will lose any data which has not reach the server, so please contact support first.
Do not keep the app on devices that are no longer in use
It's good practice to remove apps from devices you have used in the past but no longer need.
Ensure all permissions are granted to the app
The app requests specific permissions required for special features. These permissions can be granted upon the initial download and can be altered later in your mobile settings:
- Contacts - Allows you to add a contact into Commusoft from your phone’s contact list.
- Microphone - Access to the microphone allows you to record voice notes.
- Storage - Allows you to upload files from your phone on to jobs and customer profiles.
- Telephone - Allows you to make calls directly from the app.
- Location - Records GPS coordinates for travel and directions to jobs.
Airplane mode
Re-setting your network connections using Airplane mode can be a very useful method of solving sync issues. Sometimes when a phone is switching between WiFi and 4G it can incorrectly show as connected to a network. Enabling Airplane mode for a moment and disabling it will allow your phone to connect to the correct network and let any un-synced data come through.
Network issues
You can view the network status in system diagnostics > then click 'view network details'. If your phone is struggling with a network connection, you will see this displayed on the diary. If you do not see a message at the top of the diary, you have a good connection.
System diagnostics - Tools
You can open the System diagnostics page by selecting the three white lines in the top left of the app, and select System Diagnostics.
- UserID - Your Commusoft company ID.
- Username - User name of the current user logged into the app.
- Build - This is the current version of your app. The most up to date version can be found in the iTunes Store. An update button will appear in the iTunes Store if you’re not on the latest version of the app.
- System date - This is to confirm the date and time of the device align with the correct time zone.
- Local sync sequence - This is the sequence number that your device syncing is currently on. If this is between 0-500 numbers less than the Server sync sequence number below it, please follow the instructions for “Send report to support” below.
- Server sync sequence - This number is the sequence number of your company’s database on the server.
System diagnostics - Network tools
You can open the Network tools page by tapping the three white lines in the top left, navigating to System Diagnostics and tapping Network Tools
- Internet Status - Connected/Not connected.
- Carrier - The phone's network provider.
- Network Latencies - An expression of how much time it takes for a packet of data to get from one designated point to another, indicating how good your current network connection is.
- General Push Replication - This replication is responsible for downloading any data from the server, so follow steps above to restart syncing for information that has not come through from the web.
- Jobs Pull Replication - This replication is responsible for downloading all Job data from the server.
- Customers Pull Replication - This replication is responsible for downloading all Customer data from the server.
- Estimate Pull Replication - This replication is responsible for downloading all Estimate data from the server.
Note - There should be no need to restart any of the above replications unless directed by our support team.
Troubleshooting
If you are ever having issues on your device there are a few quick troubleshooting steps you can take before contacting support using the tips below.
- Swipe the app shut and reopen
- If data is not syncing through, check your Local sync and Server sync numbers to see if it might be network related
- Toggle airplane mode on an off
Contacting support
If you ever have any questions or issues please don’t hesitate to contact our support team by email at support@commusoft.co.uk.
To allow us to assist you as quickly as possible please include as much relevant information as possible in your email. This can include a clear subject line, any relevant account, invoice or certificate numbers and if possible screenshots of where in the app and/or precisely what you are inquiring about, especially the 'Network Tools' page. You can capture a screenshot on iOS devices by pressing and holding the lock screen button and clicking the 'Home' button simultaneously.